Fireteam Stormlight
by bonescaro
Summary: Tsuna Gaden, Cicada, and Rocco are new guardians, taken in by Fireteam Calypso. But with each of them having no recollection of their past, they struggle to find any motives in their new lives.
1. Cicada Wakes Up

Old Russia, Cosmodrome

She could hear something... A little voice... but the darkness was comforting. She didn't want to wake up. She strained to hear what the voice was saying

"Guardian? Wake up, guardian!"

Guardian? Her? Was she a guardian? She couldn't remember. Reluctantly, she opened her eyes and took a proper look around her.

The first thing she saw was snow. And then rusted cars.

"It worked... you're alive!" said the distant voice, now much closer.

Her eyes were drawn upward, to see a strange little orb. She looked down at her hands- were those her hands? Why was she wearing gloves? She didn't remember putting them on... there was a lot she suddenly couldn't remember. She flexed her fingers, testing them. They were awkward and stiff.

"You don't know how long I've been looking for you!"

"... Me? You've... been looking for me?" she managed to mumble as she finally found her voice.

"Yes, but it's not safe here, I have to get you to the City," her new friend replied.

"What... city?"

"You'll see. Here, hold still for a moment..."

She was terrified, she had no idea who or what those things that attacked her were... but she also felt exhilarated. The sniper rifle she now held in her hand felt almost comforting, like an old friend.

"Keep your guard up, guardian," the Ghost-her Ghost-reminded her.

It couldn't have spoken a moment too soon, as a dreg suddenly burst through the metal grate flooring in front of her. But before she could even think, her knife was suddenly plunged into its throat.

"WHOO! Did you see that? Oh, my stars, I didn't know I could move that fast-!" she hollered with excitement.

"Yes, I saw it, but keep your voice down! Do you want every Fallen in Russia to know we're here?" her Ghost chided her again.

She peeked out from behind her cover. The dregs and vandals had all been taken care of, and now she only had to deal with this captain. With her rifle brought up to her face, she looked through the scope and waited for her target to move into her sights. She didn't hesitate when the captain finally broke its own cover, and finished it off with a headshot.

"YES! Did you see that, Ghost?"

"Why do you insist on yelling every time? You're louder than summer cicadas... Now let me take a look at this old jumpship."

She put her rifle away, and watched the curious orb examine what, she assumed, was the jumpship. She certainly didn't know anything about ships, but to her eyes it looked like a pile of scrap.

She took this moment to ponder her situation more. She couldn't remember anything. Not a single fragment of a memory remained. She didn't even know her own name... but the Ghost interrupted her thoughts.

"Yeah, I can make this work. But I should tell you about the transmat-" a shrill roar interrupted him, and they both turned to see an even bigger Fallen emerge from the centuries old hole in the wall. "Bringing you in!"

She felt a peculiar sensation as she found herself in the ship suddenly. "Wait, what-"

"Hold on!"

She couldn't see the ghost, but assumed that he was the one activating the thrusters and bringing the ship to life. She buckled herself in, and watched from the cockpit as the ghost narrowly maneuvered their escape. Now it was just the two of them, and the long ride to the still unknown "city".

"... Ghost?" she asked, her previous bravado gone.

"What is it, guardian?" the little orb materialized in her view.

"What... happened? Where were we just now? How did I get there? And who am I? Why can't I remember anything?"

"Uh... slow down there for a moment. This... well I'll be honest, this may not be easy for you to hear..."

The silence in the ship was palpable and heavy. The new guardian-apparently, that's what she was now-felt very somber. She was still processing what her Ghost told her. The Traveler, the Golden Age, the Collapse... and her, dying sometime near the end of that. She was coming to terms with the fact that her previous past was lost to her, probably forever. Even her name was gone.

"Hey, Ghost?"

"Yes?" her little friend seemed to perk up-if a Ghost could do that, that is.

"What did you call me earlier?"

"Guardian?"

"No, not that, you said I was louder than... something. What was it again?"

"Oh, cicadas? Awful little things, terribly noisy-"

"Cicada. That's my name," she said with finality.

"W-what? Are you sure? There are much better names than that-"

"No, I'm sure. My name is Cicada now."

"Well... alright... Cicada. By the way, we're only a few minutes out from the City now. You should be able to see it soon."

"Alright, thank you Ghost."

The new guardian settled into her seat more comfortably, and removed her helmet. The light gleamed off her steel gray and purple paint on her mechanical face, and her optics glowed a bright white as the exo, Cicada, saw the Last City for the first time. First was walls, vast and impenetrable. the agricultural areas, vast swaths of land for growing crops and tending livestock. Then she saw the City, proper. Houses and parks, and then tall buildings, taller than her imagination would have expected. And hovering ominously over it all was the Traveler. Unmoving, silent, but guarding and watchful. Cicada inhaled, taken aback by the sheer size of it.

The ship cruised over the city, heading towards the tallest tower she could see. She was still taking in the sights, and barely heard her Ghost conversing with someone over the radio asking for identification. Finally, the ship came to a hovering stop right over the top of the building. She felt the strange tingling sensation again, and found herself in some sort of communal courtyard.

"Welcome to the Tower, Cicada, and your new home. This is where the guardians live."

Cicada didn't reply, but just looked around with wonder, drinking in as much as she could see. There were so many other people around. Some she could only assume were guardians, as they wore impressive armor. Others seemed to be dressed more casually. There were humans, and exos like her, and people that looked like humans, but had blue or purple skin, and glowing eyes.

"Come on, guardian," the Ghost chuckled, "we need to meet with the Vanguard and introduce ourselves."

"Yeah... okay..." Cicada said in a daze. As she blindly followed her Ghost, she didn't notice the eyes that had been watching her since she landed...


	2. Getting Acquainted

**Last City, The Tower**

"Come on, Gua - Cicada. We need to introduce ourselves to the Vanguard," the Ghost hummed.

Cicada could only mumble a vague agreement. The sights of the main plaza seemed more important for her to take in. There were all kinds of guardians walking around, conversing with each other. There even seemed to be shop vendors, exchanging good with a few guardians. They each had their wares displayed on a table, overhung with colorful cloth.

The other guardians were all wearing armor that seemed much more intricate and colorful than hers. She looked down at her own drab garb. She still wasn't sure where it came from. She forgot to ask the Ghost. The pale whites and dusty beige of her own armor looked so boring in comparison. _I'll have to fix that later_ , she thought to herself.

Eventually she followed the Ghost's directions down a wide set of steps in the middle of the plaza. There were more guardians in here, who's armor seemed much more battle-worn. A strange woman called out to Cicada, saying something about a "Crota". The woman's appearance was a bit off-putting, so she paid it no mind. She then found herself in a much more well-lit hall, vendors on either side. One of the tables seemed to be watched by... well it wasn't an Exo, like her, but it was robotic.

Sensing her question before she could voice it, the Ghost answered pre-emptively, "That's a frame. They're not true AI, like you or... like me. They perform more menial tasks around the Tower, mostly janitorial duties. That one, however, works for Lord Shaxx. He's a living legend, an actual hero among Guardians. That's him, over there!"

Cicada turned her gaze to the right, and indeed, there was a man with a (fantastically stylish, she thought) helmet, and fur-covered shoulder pads. The shoulder pads probably made him seem bigger, but she still thought that this man looked as sturdy as the walls that surrounded the city. He was bellowing and barking about some sort of tournament between Guardians. It certainly sounded fun.

"Come on, now, we still need to meet the Vanguard," the Ghost continued to nag.

Cicada was about to let out an exasperated sigh when a thought struck her: "Wait a minute, if this is the first time being in the Tower for both of us, how do you know these things?"

"Because I'm a Ghost, I'm supposed to know these things," it said with an air of confidence. "Also, I have access to the tower's communication and information network, and learned everything I need to know as soon as we set down."

Cicada scoffed. She supposed it didn't really matter. Finally, after much procrastination and dilly-dallying, she had reached the Vanguard Hall.

Most notable was the large table in the middle, with three very important-looking guardians observing the map and conversing with other guardians, but not much with each other. A tall, burly, bald man with... blue skin? Stood at the head of the table. Cicada supposed she wasn't really one to judge unusual skin colors, since she didn't even have skin to begin with. Closer to the other end of the table was an elegant and serious looking woman with close-cut hair and wearing dark magenta robes. She held a book in her hand, which she consulted every now and then. There was a small, cluttered book case a few feet behind her.

And right in the middle of the table, between the other two, was an exo. His face plates were a lovely shade of blue, and he had an ornament that looked like the horn of some mystical beast protruding from under his hood. The hood was part of a very old and tattered-looking cape that fell all the way down his back. It was full of patches and thick, clumsy stitches. He'd clearly been around for a while.

"That's Cayde-6, the Hunter Vanguard. Your captain, actually, since you're a hunter," the Ghost informed her.

"Wait, I'm a what?"

"Oh well there's different classes of guardians, each with unique abilities. You're a hunter. The other two classes are Titans and Warlocks. But go on! Go introduce yourself, and get yourself assigned to a mentor or training team."

"Well... alright then," She replied and tentatively stepped towards her new captain.

She stopped a couple of feet from him, and waited for him to acknowledge her presence. He was engrossed in his map, and seemed to be communicating with someone else over a com channel. She cleared her throat, though she didn't need too. His yellow optics finally looked up.

"Hey, you're new, aren't you?" He asked, "Well congratulations on becoming a guardian, and not being dead anymore. What's your name?"

"Uh..." Cicada paused, he seemed to act and speak casually for being the Captain of a third of guardian forces. "Well, I didn't remember my name when I woke up, and I still don't remember it... so I'm just Cicada now."

"Huh. Cicada..." he raised one eyebrow, "there are better names than an annoying bug that won't shut up, you know. How'd you come up with that anyway?"

Cicada chuckled, "Actually, my ghost called me that earlier, when we were still in the Cosmodrome. I wasn't being very stealthy."

Cayde let out a hearty laugh. "Well then, I suppose it suits you, Guardian. Did your ghost explain things well enough so far? You probably still have some questions."

"Well, yes actually-"

"But they're gonna have to wait. We need to get some formalities out of the way first. Like skill assessment, and then an assignment to a mentor or fireteam to teach you the ropes. Come with me..."

The skill assessment was straightforward. Cicada was tested for proficiency with different types of guns, and discovered a few of her own preferences in that regard. She certainly preferred an auto over a pulse rifle. She downright hated the hand canon and its limited capacity before she had to reload. She was an extraordinary shot with a sniper, but the fusion rifle she found interesting. Afterwards, she was supplied with some slightly more powerful weapons, and was given her first rocket launcher. Oh, she could not wait to test that out. She was heading to the hangar now, to retrieve the junk pile that saved her in the Cosmodrome. The Ghost had said it's repairs were probably finished by now.

So Cicada met Amanda Holiday. She decided that she liked her almost instantly. She was friendly and jovial, and new what she was doing. But she also knew the importance of her job. Down a few stairs from Holiday's work area was an awoken man, who seemed to be recruiting for something.

"Say, Holiday, who is that guy?" she asked the shipwright.

Holiday looked over Cicada's shoulder at the awoken she was referring to. "Oh that? That guy's name is Jalaal, he's the faction rep for Dead Orbit."

"Faction? There are factions? I thought we were all supposed to be united or something, against the Darkness?" Cicada inquired further.

"Well... that's actually a long story, that I don't think either of us have time for right now. I'll give you the short version." Holiday didn't seem too bothered by the questions. "There have been different factions in the City for as long as anyone can remember. And they're civilian factions, not guardian factions. They're pretty peaceful now, the only fighting that goes on between them anymore is just trying to recruit more members than the other factions. There's three big ones. They've taken to recruiting Guardians now, mostly just because the Guardians can bring back materials that civilians don't have access too. Jalaal's the rep for Dead Orbit. They're a grim bunch. Not very fun at parties."

Cicada took time to process this. She'd have to ask the Ghost to find out more for her later. "Huh. Well that seems like a waste of energy, splitting up resources like that. But thanks for telling me. And thanks for the ship!"

"No problem, Guardian. By the way, your ship was missing a warp drive. You're gonna need one if you want to go off-world."

"Where would I find one of those?"

"Same place you found your bird. Good luck, and be safe out there!" and with that, Holiday turned back to her work table. Cicada left her to her work, as she had other things she had to do at that moment as well.

Back out in the plaza, Cicada sat on the steps that she had first landed on. She was waiting to hear back from Cayde or one of the other Vanguard captains on her new mentor. So, she took this time to stare out at the city as the sun was setting. It seemed so vast... she wondered what the civilians were like, how many there were down there. And the Traveler just hung there in the sky, silent and unmoving. What kept it up there? Cicada still felt like she had a lot of questions, but most of them were probably going to go unanswered.

"Alright, you there, Guardian?" Cayde's voice crackled over the comms.

"Yes, sir, I'm here." she responded with a start.

"We've got your training team assignment. They actually volunteered, so we had to ditch the other paperwork and start working on theirs," he sighed "Their fireteam leader is coming out to meet you, so don't go anywhere."

The comm channel cut out, and Cicada stood up and looked around for her new mentor. She stared at the steps leading down to the vanguard hall. She shouldn't have done that.

She was nearly blinded as an exo with the shiniest, gold face plating she's ever seen, climbed up. The sun reflected so brightly off his face that she had to look away. She wasn't the only person shielding their eyes with his arrival. Why? Why was he so shiny? She couldn't see, but he seemed to realize he was blinding everyone in the plaza, and moved into the shadows. From there, now that Cicada could see him, he gestured for her to come over. As she approached him, she noticed features that she couldn't make out before. Like the ornament on his head that was very much like Cayde's. and the dark purple star painted next to it. And his complete lack of optics.

She also realized that he wasn't alone, and that there was another guardian-an awoken, she now knew that anyone with blue or purple skin was called-stood behind him, her head almost completely shaved, and she wore the telltale robes of a warlock, in a dark blue with subtle gold accents. The dark colors of her armor set her apart from the white and silver of the gold-faced Exo that towered over her.

"You must be Cicada," the golden exo gruffly greeted her. "My team and I saw you touch down. Heard you woke up in the middle of the Cosmodrome, and killed an eliksni Captain. Good work." He gave her a rough pat on the back. He spoke curtly, and his voice had a peculiar accent, some sort of foreign drawl to it.

"El... elinksi?" Cicada stuttered.

"El-ik-sni," he slowly repeated. "It's what the Fallen call themselves. Their own native word for their species. By-the-by, I'm Hazard-12." He held out his hand.

Cicada took his hand in her own and he shook it roughly. Everything about Hazard seemed to be rough, from the way he spoke, to the way his voice sounded. Even his armor, as fancy as it seemed, was worn and scratched. The only thing about him that wasn't rough was the paint on his face. _He must buff and polish it regularly I guess_ , she thought.

"And this is Tsuna Gaden. She's the second newest member of our team," Hazard gestured to the Awoken beside him.

Cicada turned her gaze to Tsuna, and reached out to shake her hand as well. Tsuna made no move to reciprocate, but studied her closely. Her eyes were a glowing fire red, like burning coals. Her gaze almost felt like actual fire, but cold and distant at the same time. Cicada started to lower her hand.

"Hazard sees potential in you," she finally spoke. "He's usually right, but I'd prefer to see you in action before making any judgement." Then, Tsuna finally took Cicada's hand in her own firm grip. "Welcome to the team, Hunter."


End file.
